since its a month before Chritmas i didnt want to drop all this coin right now and opted to put a down payment on it and pay it off after Christmas.
There is no way this would of lasted past Christmas at that price..... and as best I can tell its probably the best bang for the buck im going to get..so I pulled the trigger.

i put a lot of time and research into the purchase and for 819$ with full warranty etc there was really no other choice...

most places dont even have the mamba at this price..
ofcourse with 2012 coming to an end you wont be able to get 2012 mamba or cobia anywhere..unless its a used one. so even though im not crazy about the red color scheme i had to sieze the opportunity..

I didn't really dig the red at first (I was set on a black/orange mamba) but it has grown on me for sure. So far i've replaced the bars (easton ec70) grips (Odi Troy lee) and brakes (Hayes prime experts). I'll try to post some pics tomorrow.

cool, im thinking wheels and tires will be first upgrade... any suggestions from someone who has upgraded their wheels and tires? I was thinking Stans Arch Ex wheelset but am not certain as to which one to get..

That's a great deal on the Cobia. Got my 2012 in August for $1,030 out the door and I've really enjoyed it. I'm with you on not being crazy about the color scheme. In my opinion, it looks a bit better once you get rid of the white seat and grips (I also took the stickers off the rims). If you are interested, there's a pic of mine on page 102 of the "Your Entry Level MTB" thread. Sorry, don't have image posting privileges elsewhere yet.

That's a great deal on the Cobia. Got my 2012 in August for $1,030 out the door and I've really enjoyed it. I'm with you on not being crazy about the color scheme. In my opinion, it looks a bit better once you get rid of the white seat and grips (I also took the stickers off the rims). If you are interested, there's a pic of mine on page 102 of the "Your Entry Level MTB" thread. Sorry, don't have image posting privileges elsewhere yet.

That is a GREAT price, IMO. I paid $960+tax for mine the first week of October.
Replaced the grips and pedals, but swapping the top and bottom headset spacers with CF ones really changed the entire look of the bike in my eyes. I didn't like the color scheme, but it has grown on me to the point that I see few bikes that I think look better.
Debating some drivetrain upgrades(maybe the X9 2x10 upgrade kit), but overall it's well-suited to the riding I use it for, so I have no plans to change out anything else.

I want to upgrade the wheels first so I spoke to the shop and they can get me what i want for 400$ including the stock wheel trade ins.
so I'm going to get the SRAM X7 hub with Stanís Arch EX rims, laced with DT Swiss spokes and Schwalbe Racing Ralph performance tires (Tubeless) as the first upgrade before it leaves the shop.

update: my local shop called today and said they made a mistake and did have a 2012 Giant xtc 29er 2 in a small frame in a wharehouse in cali.. the LAST one available in the country...
SO.... I had to cancel my cobia order...
I got the Giant for 1199$ extremely pleased.

so anyone who is in the iowa city or ceder rapids iowa area you can get a small cobia for 819$ at worldofbikes ..